Vehicle seat air-conditioner and vehicle temperature controller

ABSTRACT

A vehicle seat air-conditioner includes a seat on which an occupant sits, a heat exchanger that adjusts the temperature of a conditioned gas, a blower that supplies the conditioned gas to the seat, a seat covering layer provided on a surface of the seat and facing the seated occupant, and a flow channel provided on an underside of the seat covering layer that pass the conditioned gas that is introduced by the blower. The vehicle seat air-conditioner is adapted to convey heat of the conditioned gas to an occupant side of the seat covering layer by directly blowing out a portion of the introduced conditioned gas to the occupant side of the seat covering layer, and to perform heat exchange with the occupant side of the seat covering layer by circulating a portion of a remainder of the conditioned gas through the flow channel.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

This invention relates to a vehicle seat air-conditioner that performsair conditioning through a seat on which an occupant sits, and a vehicletemperature controller that carries out integrated control of airconditioning inside the vehicle and temperature adjustment of the seatportion.

The present application claims priority on Japanese Patent ApplicationNo. 2004-255524, filed Sep. 2, 2004, Japanese Patent Application No.2004-266642, filed Sep. 14, 2004, and Japanese Patent Application No.2004-268139, filed Sep. 15, 2004, the contents of which are incorporatedherein by reference.

2. Description of Related Art

A vehicle seat air-conditioner has been devised to heat or cool anoccupant by providing a heat-exchange chamber on the underside of theseat covering layer that contacts the seated occupant, and controllingthe conditioned air (conditioned gas) introduced into the heat-exchangechamber (see, for example, Japanese Unexamined patent application, FirstPublication No. 2001-145542).

In this vehicle seat air-conditioner, conditioned air is fed from ablower through gas passages into the heat-exchange chamber provided onthe underside of the seat covering layer, so that heat exchange isperformed between the conditioned air and the seat covering layer whilethe conditioned air circulates through the heat-exchange chamber. Sincethe seat covering layer in contact with the occupant is heated or cooledby the conditioned air in the heat-exchange chamber in the case of thisvehicle seat air-conditioner, the occupant sitting on the seat is ableto directly sense warmth or coolness.

In addition, a vehicle seat air-conditioner has also been devised thathas a blower for air conditioning disposed at the bottom of a seatcushion on which an occupant sits to blow out conditioned gas throughconditioned gas flow passages formed in the cushion body of the seatcushion and out of blow-out holes penetrating the seat covering material(see, for example, Japanese Unexamined patent application, FirstPublication No. 2004-8334). In this vehicle seat air-conditioner, anaccommodation space for disposing the blower at the bottom of thecushion body (pad material) is provided, and a plurality of branchedflow passages for connecting the blow-out portion of the blower with theblow-out holes in the seat covering material are formed in the cushionbody. The conditioned gas blown out from the blow-out holes hits theoccupant sitting on the seat.

However, among such conventional vehicle seat air-conditioners, in theformer, since the seat covering layer in contact with the occupant isheated or cooled through the heat-exchange chamber on the undersidethereof, depending on the sitting posture and body shape of theoccupant, contact with the seat covering layer may be inadequate,thereby hindering sensation of warmth or coolness.

Moreover, since the latter has the configuration in which a blower isdisposed at the bottom of the cushion body of a seat cushion and aplurality of flow passages connecting the blower and the blow-out holesin the seat covering material are formed in the cushion body, in orderto secure sufficient flow passage area of the conditioned gas whilemaintaining sitting comfort, it is necessary to increase the thicknessof the cushion body, thereby hindering the application to thin seats.Thin seats have been desired in recent years due to seat design andvehicle layout considerations, and so the formulation of a seatair-conditioner that can reliably perform air conditioning withoutsacrificing sitting comfort even in such thin seats has been desired.

Apart from that, efficient energy use within a vehicle has beeninvestigated in recent years, with the simultaneous pursuit of lowerenergy consumption and sitting comfort even in the above-mentionedvehicle temperature controller being a subject of study.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In view of these circumstances, it is therefore a first object of thepresent invention to provide a vehicle seat air-conditioner that canachieve a further improvement air condition performance.

In addition, it is a second object of the present invention to provide avehicle seat air-conditioner that can also be applied to thin seatswithout sacrificing sitting comfort.

Furthermore, it is a third object of the present invention to provide avehicle temperature controller that can simultaneously achieve bothsitting comfort and a reduction in energy consumption.

The vehicle seat air-conditioner of the present invention includes: aseat on which an occupant sits; a seat temperature adjustment devicethat adjusts a temperature of a conditioned gas; a blower that suppliesthe conditioned gas to the seat; a seat covering layer provided on asurface of the seat and facing the seated occupant; and a flow channelprovided on an underside of the seat covering layer that pass theconditioned gas that is introduced by the blower, wherein the vehicleseat air-conditioner is adapted to convey heat of the conditioned gas toan occupant side by directly blowing out a portion of the introducedconditioned gas to the occupant side, and to perform heat exchange withthe occupant side via the seat covering layer by circulating a portionof a remainder of the conditioned gas through the flow channel.

The vehicle seat air-conditioner may further include blow-out holesthrough which a portion of the introduced conditioned gas is blown outto the occupant side, and an opening area of the blow-out holes in asitting region may be varied in accordance with a surface pressuredistribution therein due to sitting of the occupant.

The opening area may be set greater as a surface pressure due to sittingof the occupant is greater.

Moreover, the vehicle seat air-conditioner of the present inventionincludes: a seat on which an occupant sits; a seat temperatureadjustment device that adjusts a temperature of a conditioned gas; ablower that supplies the conditioned gas to the seat; a seat coveringlayer provided on a surface of the seat and facing the seated occupant;and a flow channel provided on an underside of the seat covering layerthat pass the conditioned gas that is introduced by the blower, whereinthe blower is disposed inside of a side support provided on a side ofthe sitting region in the seat.

The vehicle seat air-conditioner may further include a tack grooveextending along a width direction of the seat and into which the seatcovering layer is pulled, and the vehicle seat air-conditioner may beadapted to introduce the conditioned gas into the flow channel byconnecting a blow-out portion of the blower to the tack groove.

The flow channel may be formed by thread-like fiber that is capable ofexpanding and contracting in a thickness direction of the seat.

Furthermore, the vehicle temperature controller of the present inventionincludes: a vehicle seat air-conditioner having a seat temperatureadjustment device that adjusts a temperature of a conditioned gas; acabin air-conditioner that adjusts a cabin temperature; and anintegrated control device that carries out integrated control of theseat temperature adjustment device and the cabin air-conditioner.

The integrated control device may correct upward a target controltemperature of the cabin air-conditioner when the seat is in a cooledstate by the seat temperature adjustment device.

The integrated control device may correct downward a target controltemperature of the cabin air-conditioner when the seat is in a heatedstate by the seat temperature adjustment device.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1A is a cross-sectional view showing a vehicle seat air-conditioneraccording to a first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 1B is a cross-sectional view showing an enlargement of a portion ofFIG. 1A.

FIG. 2 is a schematic block diagram of the vehicle seat air-conditioner.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing a portion of the vehicle seatair-conditioner.

FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line B-B of FIG. 3.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view showing the vehicle seat air-conditioner.

FIG. 6 is a perspective view showing a modification of the vehicle seatair-conditioner.

FIG. 7 is a partially broken perspective view showing the vehicle seatair-conditioner according to the second embodiment of the presentinvention.

FIG. 8 is a perspective view showing this vehicle seat air-conditioner.

FIG. 9 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line A-A of FIG. 8.

FIG. 10 is an enlarged cross-sectional view taken along the line B-B ofFIG. 9.

FIG. 11 is an enlarged cross-sectional view of a rigidity supportmaterial.

FIG. 12 is an enlarged cross-sectional view equivalent to FIG. 9 showinganother embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 13 is a schematic block diagram showing the vehicle temperaturecontroller according to the third embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 14 is a flowchart showing the flow of control in this vehicletemperature controller.

FIG. 15 (A) is a characteristic curve showing the relation between thetarget blow-out temperature in this vehicle temperature controller, andcompressor workload, and FIG. 15 (B) is a characteristic curve showingthe connection between the target blow-out temperature in this vehicletemperature controller, and the blower workload.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Below, an example of the vehicle seat air-conditioner according to thepresent invention will be explained with reference to FIGS. 1A to 5 as afirst embodiment of the present invention.

As shown in FIGS. 1A and 1B, this vehicle seat air-conditioner C1 has aconstitution including at least a seat 1 such as a driver's seat or apassenger seat, a seat covering layer 5 described hereinbelow, a blower8, and a heat-exchange chamber (flow passage) 6.

As shown in FIG. 2, identical constituent devices are arranged in a seatcushion 2 and a seat back 3 that constitute the seat 1. Hereinbelow, theconstitution of the seat cushion 2 will be explained in detail, withidentical portions of the seat back 3 side having the same referencenumerals and redundant descriptions being omitted. Moreover,hereinbelow, air (gas) that is heated or cooled for cooling or heatingis referred to “conditioned gas”.

A cushion body 4 of the seat cushion 2 is covered with the seat coveringlayer 5 as shown in FIGS. 1A and 1B. A shallow concave portion isprovided near the center of the top surface of the cushion body 4, thatis, the region where the load of the occupant directly acts when theoccupant is seated. The space formed between the concave portion and theseat covering layer 5 serves as a heat-exchange chamber 6. In thisembodiment, the space portion (heat-exchange chamber 6) is divided intoa plurality by a tack portion 7 into which the seat covering layer ispulled and fixed to the cushion body 4 side. Therefore, a plurality ofindependent heat-exchange chambers 6 are formed between the cushion body4 and the seat covering layer 5. In addition, in this embodiment, anon-breathing thin film 21 is embedded near the outer surface of thecushion body 4, and the seat covering layer 5 has a two-layer structurewhich consists of a cushion sheet 5 a on the underside, and anon-breathing cover sheet 5 b on the upper side. Moreover, on theundersurface of the seat covering layer 5, a rigidity support material(not shown) having high rigidity on both sides and permeability isattached to the region where an occupant's load acts, and this rigiditysupport material is of a shape that is filled in the heat-exchangechambers 6.

An air conditioning unit 9 containing a blower 8 is disposed at thebottom side of the cushion body 4, and conditioned gas supply ports 10of the air conditioning unit 9 are connected to the heat-exchangechambers 6 at the upper part of the cushion body 4. In the cushion body4 are formed introduction passages 11 that connect the supply ports 10with the heat-exchange chambers 6, and discharge passages 12 thatdischarge the gas supplied to the heat-exchange chambers 6 from theunderside of the cushion body 4 to the outside. These introductionpassages 11 and discharge passages 12 constitute the gas flow passage inthis invention, with the heat-exchange chambers 6 being interposed inthe middle of this gas flow passage.

In the air conditioning unit 9, as shown in FIG. 3, a pair of heatexchangers 13 are connected in parallel downstream of the blower 8, andafter the air sent from the blower 8 is heated or cooled by each heatexchanger 13, it is fed to the heat-exchange chambers 6 from the supplyports 10. As shown in FIG. 4, the interior of a casing 14 of each heatexchanger 13 is divided into an upper chamber 14 a and a lower chamber14 b by a partition wall 15, with heat sinks 16 a, 16 b disposed on theinlet side of the upper chamber 14 a and the lower chamber 14 bconnected to the blower 8, respectively. A Peltier element 17 isarranged between the heat sinks 16 a, 16 b. The opposing heat-exchangesurfaces of the Peltier element 17 are contact connected to both heatsinks 16 a, 16 b, with heat exchange performed between the heat sinks 16a and 16 b, i.e., between the top chamber 14 a and the bottom chamber 14b, in accordance with the current direction of the Peltier element 17.In addition, the inlet side of the top chamber 14 a and the bottomchamber 14 b is connected to the blower 8 by a common tube 18, and thedownstream side of the bottom chamber 14 b is connected to an exhaustpipe 20 shown in FIG. 2 and FIG. 3 through an outlet port 19. Thisexhaust pipe 20 discharges the air on the bottom chamber 14 b side whereheat exchange was performed by the Peltier element 17 to the outside ofthe seat 1.

In addition, the blower 8 of the air conditioning unit 9 and theelectric current of the Peltier element 17 are controlled by acontroller 22.

A plurality of blow-out holes 23 are formed in the portions of the seatcovering layer 5 facing the heat-exchange chambers 6, with a portion ofthe conditioned air introduced into the heat-exchange chambers 6 beingblown to the outside of the seat covering layer 5 through these blow-outholes 23.

Moreover, in the case of this embodiment, the diameter (opening area) ofthe blow-out holes 23 is not uniform, and as shown in FIG. 5, thediameter of the blow-out holes 23 is configured to increase at thoseregions of the seat covering layer 5 where the surface pressure ishigher during sitting on the seat.

Since a vehicle seat air-conditioner C1 of this embodiment is of theaforementioned constitution, the conditioned air in the upper chamber 14a side that is heat exchanged by the Peltier element 17 in the airconditioning unit 9 flows into the heat-exchange chambers 6 through thesupply ports 10 and the introduction passages 11. By the time theconditioned air comes out of the discharge passage 12, it has performedheat exchange with the seal covering layer 5 and a portion of theconditioned air is emitted to the outside of the seat covering layer 5through the blow-out holes 23. Therefore, supposing for example thatcooling is being performed, cool air, which is conditioned air, directlycools the seat covering layer 5 in the heat-exchange chambers 6, and aportion of the cool air is blown to the top surface of the seat coveringlayer 5 through the blow-out holes. As a result, a cooling sensation iseffectively imparted to the occupant seated on the seat 1 by the coolingof the contact portion of the seat covering layer 5 and the blowing ofthe cool air. During heating, a sensation of heating can be effectivelyimparted to the occupant with the same action just by replacing the coolair introduced to the heat exchange chambers 6 with warm air.

Moreover, since the vehicle seat air-conditioner C1 of this embodimentconcurrently performs heat exchange of the seat covering layer 5 andblowing of conditioned air from the seat covering layer 5, a coolingsensation or a heating sensation can be imparted to the occupant by theblowing effect of the conditioned air even when the body of the occupantis not completely in close contact with the seat covering layer 5.

Furthermore, in the vehicle seat air-conditioner C1 of this embodiment,since the opening areas of the blow-out holes 23 are configured toincrease the more the body of the occupant is strongly pressed againstthe seat covering layer 5, there are the advantages of the blow-outholes 23 not being easily plugged by the body of the occupant and acooling sensation or warming sensation able to be reliably imparted toan occupant seated in the seat 1.

Furthermore, the vehicle seat air-conditioner C1 of this embodiment doesnot require routing of complicated air conditioning piping from outsideof the seat 1 since conditioned air is generated by the Peltier element17 in the air conditioning unit 9 arranged in every seat 1. Moreover,rapid air conditioning control can be individually performed for everyseat in accordance with whether an occupant is seated or not. Also,since this device employs the Peltier element 17, in contrast to heatingthat utilizes heat of an internal combustion engine, warm conditionedair can be used immediately upon entering the vehicle, so that a heatingsensation can be promptly imparted to an occupant by coupling the heatexchange (heating) with the aforementioned seat covering layer 5 itselfand the effect of blowing conditioned air (warm air).

In the vehicle seat air-conditioner C1 as explained above, the examplewas given of the diameters of the blow-out holes 23 being configured toincrease at those portions of the seat covering layer 5 where thesurface pressure increases while an occupant is seated; however, it isnot limited thereto. For example, FIG. 6 shows a vehicle seatair-conditioner C1 b as a modification of the vehicle seatair-conditioner C1. As shown in this example, the diameter of theblow-out holes 23 may be made nearly uniform, while the formationdensity of the holes may be configured to be greater in correlation withthose areas where the surface pressure increases while an occupant isseated. In this case as well, since the total opening area per unit areaof the blow-out holes 23 increases in correlation with those areas ofthe seat covering layer 5 where the surface pressure increases, acooling sensation or warming sensation can be reliably imparted to aseated occupant similarly to the case of the vehicle seatair-conditioner C1.

The vehicle seat air-conditioner according to the present invention isnot limited to the aforementioned embodiments, with various designvariations being possible within a range that does not depart from thespirit or scope thereof. In the above-mentioned embodiment, although theexample was given of applying the vehicle seat air-conditioner C1 to thefront side seats of a vehicle, it is not limited to the front seats andcan also be applied, for example, to a bench-type seat in the rear sideof a vehicle.

Moreover, in the above-mentioned embodiment, although an explanation wasgiven of generation of conditioned air to be introduced into theheat-exchange chambers by a Peltier element, it is also possible togenerate conditioned air with a well-known air conditioning systememploying the heat of engine cooling water and the adiabatic expansionof refrigerant gas, and the like.

As a second embodiment of the present invention, other examples of thevehicle seat air-conditioner according to the present invention will beexplained with reference to FIGS. 7 to 11.

As shown in FIG. 7, a vehicle seat air-conditioner C2 has a constitutionequipped with at least a seat 101, such as a driver's seat or apassenger seat, a seat covering material (seat covering layer) 106described hereinbelow, a blower 17, and flow passages that circulateconditioned gas. In addition, in FIG. 8, 102 is a seat cushion, 103 aseat back and 104 a headrest.

The seat cushion 102 has a basic structure in which a cushion body 105consisting of a pad material is covered with the seat covering material106, with side support portions 108, having a cross-section bulging in amountain shape, provided on both sides of a sitting portion 107 on whichan occupant sits. A sheet-shaped rigidity support material 109 (forexample, material called a “Space Fabric” (registered trademark)) havingpermeability is bonded to the back surface of the sitting portion 107 ofthe seat covering material 106. It is desirable that this rigiditysupport material 109 has a constitution in which, as shown in FIG. 11,high rigidity fabric “a” is disposed on both sides, with the fabric “a”on both sides being connected by a thread-like fiber “b” which canexpand and contract in the thickness direction. By using material ofsuch a constitution, high surface rigidity is maintained while securingpermeability, and, moreover, suitable elasticity that does not impairthe function as a cushion can be obtained.

In addition, a tack portion 110 that pulls in a portion of the seatcovering material 106 toward the inside of the cushion body 105 isprovided near the center of the sitting portion 107, in a longitudinaldirection, of the seat cushion 102 as shown in FIGS. 7 and 8. This tackportion 110 is constituted to form a tack groove 111 on the top surfaceof the cushion body 105 that extends along the seat width direction,with the seat covering material 106 being pulled into the tack groove111 and intermittently engaged by a lock fitting 112 at the bottom ofthe tack groove 111 as shown in FIG. 9.

Specifically, in the tack portion 110, as shown in FIG. 10, the endportions of two sheets of seat covering material 106 having theaforementioned rigidity support material 109 bonded to the back sidethereof are stitched together in a state of a resin board 113 sandwichedtherebetween. A plurality of locations of the resin board 113 arefastened to an anchoring resin hoard 114 embedded at the bottom of thetack groove 111 by the C-shaped lock fittings 112. After locking thelock fitting 112 to the seat covering material 106 side and tack groove111 side resin boards 113, 114, the lock fitting 112 is deformed toclose the opening of the C-shape. Moreover, although the stitchedportion of the seat covering material 106 located in the tack portion110 is fixed at the bottom of the tack groove 111 by the aforementionedlock fittings 112, the end of the stitched portion, after being engagedby the lock fittings 112, forms an extended space 115 that extends inthe seat-width direction along the bottom of the tack groove 111. Thisextended space 115 forms a part of the flow passage for the conditionedgas to be described hereinbelow.

Moreover, an accommodation space 116 is provided inside the cushion body105 of the side support portion 108 on each side, with a blower 117 forfeeding conditioned gas being arranged in each accommodation space 116.Although the blower 117 may be arranged alone in this accommodationspace 116 and connected by piping with a heat exchange unit locatedoutside the seat, an air conditioning unit including a heat exchangeunit such as a Peltier element may be integrated with the blower 17 andarranged as a unit in the accommodation space 116.

As shown in FIG. 7 and FIG. 9, an introduction hole 118 whichcommunicates with a blow out portion 121 of the blower 117 is formed inthe side wall facing the extending space 115 of the side support 108,and the conditioned gas fed from the blower 117 flows into the extendedspace 115 through the introduction hole 118. And the conditioned gaswhich flows into the extended space 115 passes along the interior of therigidity support material 109 on the underside of the seat coveringmaterial 106 and is introduced into the under-face side of the sittingportion 107 of the seat covering material 106. Moreover, dischargepassages 119 utilizing the joints between blocks of padding material areprovided in the cushion body 105, with conditioned gas being dischargedfrom the under-face side of the seat covering material 106 to the seatbottom side through the discharge passages 119. In this seatair-conditioner, the rigidity support material 109 and the dischargepassages 119 constitute the flow passage for conditioned gas togetherwith the above-mentioned extended space 115.

In this vehicle seat air-conditioner C2, while the conditioned gaspasses through the interior of the rigidity support material 109, heatexchange is performed between the conditioned gas and the region of theseat covering material 106 where the occupant is seated, with thesitting region of the seat covering material 106 being thereby heated orcooled by the conditioned gas. As a result, warmth or coldness istransmitted to the occupant seated in the seat 101 through the contactportion with the seat covering material 106.

In the vehicle seat air-conditioner C2, since the blower 117 is arrangedinside the side supports 108 on the side of the occupant sitting regionas explained above, compared to conventional constitutions in which theblower 117 is disposed at the bottom of the cushion body 105, it ispossible to lessen the total thickness of the cushion body 105 below thesitting region for attaining similar cushion performance. Moreover,since the extended space 115 under the tack portion 110 that extends inthe seat width direction and the rigidity support material 109 bonded tothe undersurface of the sitting portion of the seat covering material106 serve as flow passages of the conditioned gas without flow passagesfor the conditioned gas being specially formed in the cushion body 105,there is no need to increase the thickness of the cushion body 105 toform conditioned gas flow passages in the cushion body 105. This greatlycontributes to lessening the thickness of the cushion body 105. In thecase of adopting this vehicle seat air-conditioner C2, it is therebypossible to make the seat cushion 102 into a sufficiently thin shapewithout sacrificing sitting comfort. Therefore, substantially greaterfreedom is allowed in seat design and vehicle body layout.

Moreover, in this vehicle seat air-conditioner C2, since the rigiditysupport material 109 itself can be used as a flow passage for theconditioned gas by having the end portion of the rigidity supportmaterial 109 bonded to the underside of the occupant sitting region ofthe seat covering material 106 face the extended space 115, there is noneed to form a dedicated heat exchange chamber facing the underside ofthe seat covering material 106 on the top surface of the cushion 105,thereby affording the advantage of flow passage formation being easy.

Furthermore, in this vehicle seat air-conditioner C2, there is also theadvantage that since the conditioned gas is introduced from the extendedspace 115 at the lower face side of the tack portion 110 along theunderside of the seat covering material 106, the flow of the conditionedgas is smooth, and uniform heat exchange is easily performed over nearlythe entire region of the sitting portion 107. More specifically, sincethe seat covering 106 is smoothly drawn in a curve toward the tackgroove 111 as shown in FIG. 10, the conditioned air flowing into theextended space 115 smoothly flows along the curved shaped of the seatcovering material 106 and easily spreads into all corners of theundersurface of the sitting portion 107.

Furthermore, in this vehicle seat air-conditioner C2, since the seatcovering material 106 at the tack portion 110 and the bottom of the tackportion 110 are connected by lock fittings 112, conditioned gas reliablyflows through the ring-shaped inside space of the lock fittings 112 evenin the case of using large lock fittings 112 that simplify fitting workof the seat covering material 106. Therefore, in the case of the deviceof the present embodiment, there is also an advantage that the lockfittings 112 hardly hinder the flow of the conditioned gas flowingthrough the extended space 115.

The vehicle seat air-conditioner according to the present invention isnot limited to the aforementioned embodiments, with various designvariations being possible within a range that does not depart from thespirit or scope thereof. For example, in the vehicle seatair-conditioner C2 as described above, the example was given ofconditioned gas that flowed into the under-face side of the seatcovering material 106 along the extended space 115 of the tack portion110 and the rigidity support material 109 being discharged to below thecushion 105 through discharge passages 119; however, it is not limitedthereto. For example, as a modification shown in FIG. 12, a plurality ofblow-out holes 125 may be formed in the sitting portion 107 of the seatcovering material 106, so that conditioned air introduced to the backface side of the seat covering material 106 through the extended space115 and the rigidity support material 109 is blown to the occupant sidethrough the blow-out holes 125. In this case, similarly to theabove-mentioned embodiment, the seat cushion 102 can be made into asufficiently thin shape without sacrificing sitting comfort.

Next, as the third embodiment of the present invention, an example ofthe vehicle temperature controller according to the present invention isexplained with reference to FIGS. 13 to 15.

FIG. 13 shows a general structure of the vehicle temperature controlleraccording to the present invention. A vehicle temperature controller C10includes a cabin air-conditioner 201 that adjusts the in-cabin airconditioning temperature; a seat temperature adjustment device 202 thatadjusts the temperature of a seat; and an electronic control unit(integrated control device: hereafter referred to as “ECU”) 203 thatcarries out integrated control of the aforementioned devices.

Provided in the cabin air-conditioner 201 are a fan duct 204, an outsideair inlet 205 that takes in the air outside a vehicle (outside air) tothe upstream side of the fan duct 204, and an inside air inlet 206 thatsucks in the air in the cabin (inside air). In addition, near theoutside air inlet 205 and the inside air inlet 206 is provided aninside/outside air damper 207, with switching between inside air andoutside air being performed by this inside/outside air damper 207.

A blower 208 is provided in the fan duct 204, with an evaporator 209that constitutes a refrigerating cycle, an air mix damper 210, and aheater core 211 through which engine cooling water circulates formed onthe downstream side of this blower 208. The air mix damper 210 adjuststhe proportion of the inside air that that passes the heater core 211,and the inside air that does not pass, and by this proportion adjustmentadjusts the temperature of the blow-off air.

Moreover, a DEF air outlet 212 that blows air toward the windshield of avehicle, a FACE air outlet 213 that blows air toward the upper half ofthe driver's body, and a FOOT air outlet 214 that blows air towards thelower half of a driver's body are provided on the downstream side of thefan duct 204. Open/close adjustment dampers 215 to 217 are provided forthe air outlets 212 to 214, respectively, so that the air outletsthrough which air leaves can be selected by opening/closing adjustmentof the dampers 215 to 217.

An inside air temperature sensor 218 that detects the cabin airtemperature, an outside air temperature sensor 219 that detects thetemperature outside the vehicle, and a solar radiation sensor 220 thatdetects the amount of insolation at the installation location in thecabin are connected to the ECU 203. The ECU 203 performs automaticcontrol of the cabin air-conditioner 201 based on detection signals Tr,Ta, and Ts from the respective sensors. Moreover, an air-conditioneroperation panel 221 and a seat operation panel 222 are connected to theECU 203, and an interlock switch 223 that interlocks the cabinair-conditioner 201 and the seat temperature adjustment device 202 isconnected to the ECU 203. In addition to a power switch, an operationchangeover switch for switching between automatic operation and manualoperation, a temperature setting switch, and an air outlet selectionswitch and the like are provided on the air-conditioner operation panel221, with the operation signals from these switches being input into theECU 203.

The ECU 203 mainly consists of a microcomputer, with a map that refersto a control program and control data being stored in the built-in ROM.The ECU 203 regulates the cabin temperature to a preset temperatureaccording to the inside and outside air temperature and insolationamount during automatic operation, monitors input of the interlockswitch 223, and performs correction processing of the target blow-outtemperature (target control temperature) of the cabin air-conditioner201 when an ON signal is input from the interlock switch 223. Thiscorrection processing is described in detail hereinbelow.

The seat temperature adjustment device 202 consists of a seat thatincludes a cushion 226 and a seat back 227; a heat exchanger 224installed outside the seat that performs cooling and heating of blowingair (gas); a blower 225 that feeds air to the heat exchanger 224;introduction passages 228 that supply air (conditioned gas) that passedthrough the heat exchanger 224 to the interior of the seat cushion 226and the seat back 227; and a plurality of blow-out holes 229 that blowout the air supplied to the introduction passages 228 to the outsidefrom the outer skin of the seat cushion 226 and the seat back 227. It ispreferable that the seat used here have an equivalent constitution tothe seats in the aforementioned first or second embodiments.

In the seat temperature adjustment device 202, the output of the heatexchanger 224 and the blower 225 are controlled by the ECU 203, and thetemperature of the seat covering portion in close contact with theoccupant is controlled by the temperature and quantify of the air blownout from the blow-out holes 229. When using components that allowminiaturization, such as a Peltier element and the like, in the heatexchanger 224, the heat exchanger 224 and the blower 225 may beinstalled in the seat cushion 226 portion. Moreover, a temperaturesensor 230 is provided on the introduction passage 228 near the heatexchanger 224, and the temperature signal detected with the temperaturesensor 230 is input into the ECU 203.

The seat operation panel 222 is provided with a power switch that turnsON/OFF operation of the heat exchanger 224 and the blower 225; a modechange-over switch which switches between warm air and cool air; and atemperature control switch that adjusts the blowing temperature, withthese operation signals being input into the ECU 203.

In the vehicle temperature controller C10, when the above-mentionedinterlock switch 223 is turned OFF, the cabin air-conditioner 201 andthe seat temperature adjustment device 202 can each be independentlyoperated. However, when the interlock switch 223 is turned ON, the ECU203 applies correction processing to the target blow-out temperature(target control temperature) of the cabin air-conditioner 201 dependingon the operation condition of the seat temperature adjustment device202.

Specifically, the correction means constituted by the ECU 203 determineswhether the seat temperature adjustment device 202 is OFF, in coolingoperation or heating operation, and performs the following correctionprocessing during cooling operation and heating operation. Morespecifically, at the time of cooling operation, upward correction ofpreset temperature ΔT is performed with respect to the target blow-outtemperature Tao of the cabin air-conditioner 201.

On the other hand, at the time of (2) heating operation, downwardcorrection of preset temperature ΔT is performed with respect to thetarget blow-out temperature Tao of the cabin air-conditioner 201.

In addition, although the preset temperature ΔT may be a steady value,it may also be determined by calculations according to the state ofdivergence of the target blow-out temperature Tao and the present cabinair temperature or based on a map value.

The flow of control when the interlock switch 223 is ON is as shown inthe flowchart of FIG. 14.

Namely, in the ECU 203, in step S101, the process progresses to the nextstep S102 when the cabin air-conditioner 201 is in automatic operationand the interlock switch 223 is ON. In step S102, the operation state ofthe seat temperature adjustment device 202 is determined. When the seattemperature adjustment device 202 is OFF, the process progresses to stepS103 and the target blow-out temperature Tao is maintained. When theseat temperature adjustment device 202 is in cooling operation, theprocess progresses to step S104, and when in heating operation, itprogresses to step S105. In steps S104 and S105, the aforementionedprocesses (1) and (2) are executed respectively, and the target blow-outtemperature Tao is appropriately corrected.

In the vehicle temperature controller C10, when the cabinair-conditioner 201 is in automatic operation and the interlock switch223 is ON as described above, when cooling (blowing out cool air) of aseat is performed by the seat temperature adjustment device 202, thetarget blow-out temperature Tao of the cabin air-conditioner 201 will becorrected upward. At this time, since cool air being blown from the seatdirectly cools the seat and the seated occupant, even if the temperatureof the blown air of the cabin air-conditioner 201 is corrected upward,the occupant seated in the seat can sense a sufficient coolingsensation.

When the target blow-out temperature Tao of the cabin air-conditioner201 is at this time corrected upward from a to a′ as shown in FIG. 15,the compressor workload which constitutes the refrigerating cycledecreases by Wc₁, and the workload of the blower 208 similarly decreasesby Wb₁. Therefore, with this vehicle temperature controller, at the timeof cooling operation, energy consumption can be reduced by the workloadamount totaling Wc₁ and Wb₁.

Moreover, when the cabin air-conditioner 201 is in automatic operationand the interlock switch 223 is ON, heating (blowing out warm air) ofthe seat by the seat temperature adjustment device 202 causes the targetblow-out temperature Tao of the cabin air-conditioner 201 to becorrected downward. At this time, since warm air being blown from theseat directly warms the seat and the seated occupant, even if thetemperature of the blown air of the cabin air-conditioner 201 iscorrected downward, the occupant seated in the seat can sense asufficient heating sensation.

When the target blow-out temperature Tao of the cabin air-conditioner201 is at this time corrected downward from b to b′ as shown in part (B)of FIG. 15, the blower workload decreases by Wb₂. Therefore, with thisvehicle temperature controller C10, at the time of warming operation,energy consumption can be reduced by the workload amount Wb₂.

The vehicle temperature controller according to the present invention isnot limited to the aforementioned embodiments, with various designvariations being possible within a range that does not depart from thespirit or scope thereof. For example, the above-mentioned embodimentemployed the seat temperature adjustment device 202 of a type that blowsout cooling air or warming air from the outer skin of the seat cushion226 and the seat back 227; however, it is also possible to use a seattemperature adjustment device of a type that performs heat exchange withthe seat covering at the undersurface without directly blowing out airfrom the seat cushion 226 and the seat back 227.

What is claimed is:
 1. A vehicle seat air-conditioner comprising: a seatadapted to receive an occupant, the seat including a seat back and aseat cushion, the seat cushion including first and second side supportportions and a sitting portion, the first and second side supportportions each having a cross-section that is bulging in a convex shape,the first and second side support portions being disposed on oppositelateral sides of the sitting portion; a heat exchanger that adjusts atemperature of a conditioned gas; a blower that supplies the conditionedgas to the seat; a seat covering layer defining an outer surface of theseat; and a cushion body that is covered by the seat covering layer,wherein the vehicle seat air-conditioner is adapted to convey heatbetween the conditioned gas and the occupant, and the blower is disposedwithin the first side support portion.
 2. The vehicle seatair-conditioner according to claim 1, further comprising a flow channeldefined by a space between the cushion body and the seat covering layer,and extending along a surface of the seat, the flow channel receivingthe conditioned gas from the blower.
 3. The vehicle seat air-conditioneraccording to claim 2, wherein the seat covering layer is adapted toconvey heat of the conditioned gas flowing through the flow channel tothe occupant.
 4. The vehicle seat air-conditioner according to claim 2,further comprising a blow-out hole formed in the seat covering layer andconnected to the flow channel, the conditioned gas flowing through theflow channel being blown out through the blow-out hole toward theoccupant.
 5. The vehicle seat air-conditioner according to claim 1,wherein at least a portion of the blower is disposed above a bottomsurface of the cushion body.
 6. The vehicle seat air-conditioneraccording to claim 1, further comprising a tack groove provided in thecushion body, wherein the seat covering layer is pulled into the tackgroove.
 7. The vehicle seat air-conditioner according to claim 6,wherein the tack groove extends along a width direction of the seat. 8.The vehicle seat air-conditioner according to claim 7, wherein theblower includes a blow-out portion, wherein a space between the cushionbody and the seat covering layer defines a flow channel, and wherein thevehicle seat air-conditioner is adapted to introduce the conditioned gasinto a flow into the flow channel by connecting the blow-out portion ofthe blower to the tack groove.
 9. The vehicle seat air-conditioneraccording to claim 1, wherein a lateral distance between the first andsecond side support portions is greater than a lateral distance betweena first boundary between the first support portion and the sittingportion and a second boundary between the second support portion and thesitting portion, and the seat back includes third and fourth sidesupport portions and a flat portion, the third and fourth side supportportions being laterally spaced from one another by the flat portionwith a lateral distance therebetween which is greater than a lateraldistance between a third boundary between the third support portion andthe flat portion and a fourth boundary between the fourth supportportion and the flat portion.
 10. A vehicle seat air-conditionercomprising: a seat adapted to receive an occupant, the seat including aseat back and a seat cushion, the seat cushion including first andsecond side support portions and a sitting portion, the first and secondside support portions being laterally spaced from one another by thesitting portion, wherein the first and second side support portions eachinclude a void that defines an accommodation space; a heat exchangerthat adjusts a temperature of a conditioned gas; and a blower thatsupplies the conditioned gas to the seat, wherein the blower is disposedwithin the accommodation space of the first side support portion. 11.The vehicle seat air-conditioner of claim 10, wherein the first andsecond side support portions each have a cross-section that is bulgingin a convex shape, and wherein the first and second side supportportions are disposed on opposite lateral sides of the sitting portion.12. The vehicle seat air-conditioner of claim 10, further comprising: aseat covering layer defining an outer surface of the seat; and a cushionbody that is covered by the seat covering layer, wherein the vehicleseat air-conditioner is adapted to convey heat between the conditionedgas and the occupant.
 13. The vehicle seat air-conditioner according toclaim 12, further comprising a flow channel defined by a space betweenthe cushion body and the seat covering layer, and extending along asurface of the seat, the flow channel receiving the conditioned gas fromthe blower.
 14. The vehicle seat air-conditioner according to claim 13,wherein the seat covering layer is adapted to convey heat of theconditioned gas flowing through the flow channel to the occupant. 15.The vehicle seat air-conditioner according to claim 12, wherein at leasta portion of the blower is disposed above a bottom surface of thecushion body.
 16. The vehicle seat air-conditioner according to claim12, further comprising a tack groove provided in the cushion body,wherein the seat covering layer is pulled into the tack groove.
 17. Thevehicle seat air-conditioner according to claim 16, wherein the tackgroove extends along a width direction of the seat.
 18. The vehicle seatair-conditioner according to claim 17, wherein the blower includes ablow-out portion, wherein a space between the cushion body and the seatcovering layer defines a flow channel, and wherein the vehicle seatair-conditioner is adapted to introduce the conditioned gas into theflow channel by connecting the blow-out portion of the blower to thetack groove.
 19. The vehicle seat air-conditioner according to claim 10,wherein a lateral distance between the first and second side supportportions is greater than a lateral distance between a first boundarybetween the first support portion and the sitting portion and a secondboundary between the second support portion and the sitting portion, andthe seat back includes third and fourth side support portions and a flatportion, the third and fourth side support portions being laterallyspaced from one another by the flat portion with a lateral distancetherebetween which is greater than a lateral distance between a thirdboundary between the third support portion and the flat portion and afourth boundary between the fourth support portion and the flat portion.